LEAP!

this is a LEAP year!

Just reminding you in case you, like me, had forgotten… this is a year in which we receive an additional day. We can do anything with that day, from extremely ordinary things like calling your grandmother and doing laundry to extraordinary things like composing an opera or learning to surf. It’s a gift, this extra day.

extra ordinary laundry...

Inspired by that realization, I’d like to take a moment to talk about the leaps of faith that the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) and Team In Training have motivated (and helped) me to take over the last few years.

When I first moved to the US, I didn’t know many people and didn’t have authorization to work here. I found it very difficult to meet people, rapidly becoming lonely and depressed. A friend of mine encouraged me to join Team In Training as a way to meet people and to feel like I was doing something meaningful with my time while I was waiting for my work permit…

• I didn’t know many people in the US that I could ask to donate, and didn’t have an income. I was super stressed out about whether or not I could manage the fundraising commitment, but the LLS staff assured me that they would help me find ways to reach that goal… so I took the leap, and agreed to fundraise to help find a cure for blood cancers.
• I had never run a marathon before, but the TNT coaches assured me that they could get me ready in time… so I took that leap and signed up for my first marathon with the Team.
• In subsequent years I took another leap, becoming a mentor with the team… helping other new participants to reach their fundraising and training goals and finding ways to help connect the team to the mission of LLS.
• Last year I took a HUGE leap out of my comfort zone and learned to swim, completing a triathlon with the support and encouragement of my Team.
• This year I am taking on a new challenge, another leap out of my comfort zone, and am training for a 100 mile bike ride.

Cycle training has begun, and it’s February. As you might imagine, it is not especially warm. With recent snow and ice storms, the roads are not exactly calling my name at the moment… but, it’s time to get moving on the bike and the fundraising. To get moving on the bike, I pretty much just have to dust off my bike, take it out of my living room and go. To get moving on my fundraising, I am proposing another kind of leap.

HERE IS THE DEAL:

 

As of this moment… I have $372 in my fundraising account. If there is $1000 in my fundraising account at noon on Leap Day (Monday, February 29th) … when I get home after work, I will take a leap into Lake Jackson. My husband has agreed to film my swim so we can post it on Facebook (and here on my fundraising website) for your viewing pleasure. Or you are welcome to come spectate in person.

Might I add that there is still ice on the lake? Current forecast for February 29th is mostly cloudy, with highs of 46°F (7.5°C), lows of 31°F (-0.5°C). Today, February 18, the water temperature is roughly 34.8˚F. Surely some of you would donate a little money to a great cause in exchange for the opportunity to see me take the plunge?

Can we do it? Raise $628 in ten days? I think we can…

Why would I want to do this, you might ask? I’m doing it for my friend Jenn, who’s in the early days of her diagnosis and treatment and is taking it on all like a champ. I’m doing it for my friend Jeff who you may recall underwent a stem cell transplant last year. I’m doing it for my Auntie Christine. I’m doing it for my cousin’s sweetheart. They’re all fighting this disease and need to know that we’re there with them. I’m doing it for hope. And love. And a cancer-free world in the future.

Come on in… take the leap.


Donate online here:  http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/ambbr16/MTataje


Or, ask me about raffle tickets to win a new Mercedes-Benz... $100/ticket, only 5000 tickets sold, two chances to win.